16th June, takeaway?

I have to admit, it’s taken me a while to get round to writing this because once I do, that’ll be it for the recaps for a good while! I started this blog almost exactly a year ago and really didn’t expect anyone to actually be reading and to be so supportive and encouraging; so thank you all so much! Now, onto our last dose of Ballum before summer hiatus..

Screencaps for this episode can be found here.

Phil’s round at the flat, mouthing off to Ben about Sharon, because he thinks she’s affected his chances of getting the Vic after she’s clearly told Linda that Phil threw her and the baby out. It’s a bit of a mind boggle, as Phil wanting to get the Vic was originally for Sharon – and now it’s seemingly just to spite her. Because she chose her son over him. I suppose Phil can’t relate.
Ben is telling Phil to calm down – he’s scrunching his eyes up and rubbing his temple, and he looks small and defenceless in his maroon hoodie, slightly hunched where he’s sitting as Phil rants away, more to himself than to Ben. And Ben’s clearly still not feeling great.
Enter Callum, who catches the tail end of the sentence with Phil mentioning putting the brakes on everything, and he guesses the contracts haven’t been signed for the Vic; very astute. But he’s looking at Ben as he says it, like his first priority is to check on Ben, reaching out to touch him to let him know he’s there and for comfort, before giving Phil his attention; but he keeps his hand on the back of Ben’s neck almost protectively.
Callum seems surprised at the suggestion that Sharon’s been speaking to the Carters, but Phil doesn’t respond. He probably knows rightly that Linda’s defending her friend and that it’s most likely her own decision to try and stop Phil getting the Vic – but of course, Phil being Phil, it’s much easier for him to direct his outrage at Sharon because she’s the one who’s “betrayed” him, and treating Linda’s outburst as a sign of disrespect.
Callum turns back to Ben at this point, handing him a bag of meds from the pharmacy and telling him that they’re the strongest they had, accompanied by a little stroke of his hair. Can you just imagine Callum asking the pharmacist for the strongest painkillers they had? Although I say painkillers; they’re more likely to be flu tablets if Ben’s still making out that his ear doesn’t hurt.
Ben tries to reassure his dad that he’ll get the Vic, because if Mick’s going to sell then Phil is his only chance (not sure how Ben can know that, but anyway..). I suppose Ben needs Phil to get the Vic as much as Phil does because if he doesn’t, then it means the warehouse job, and the damage Ben took, was for nothing.
Ben raises his voice as he speaks, and it’s because he can’t hear himself at all anymore, can’t tell what’s a normal level and what isn’t. I think it’s possible that Callum interprets it as distress, and that’s why he steps in and (as politely as he can) basically tells Phil to do one, because Ben’s ill and doesn’t need Phil ranting at him.
Phil wraps it up then (it looks like Ben throws Callum a look and Callum touches the back of his head once more in response – I’m calling it a thank you from Ben for the rescue), and tells Ben that Sharon will get her comeuppance once they’re all in the Vic and she’s still with Ian. And this is because Sharon wants to bring up her own son! Ben and Callum both give him a confused look as he leaves, and Callum turns to look at Ben in confusion.
Obviously neither of them were consulted about moving into the Vic with Phil. I mean, as far as we know Ben’s technically living at the Mitchell house, but maybe he’s actually moved into the flat at this point? Living arrangements are always a bit vague on EastEnders. It’s also not totally clear at this point whether he means Callum as well, or just Ben, Lexi and Lola.

Cut to Ben, dozing on the sofa as Callum gently wakes him with a hand to his leg, setting down a cup of tea. He sits on the arm of the sofa and his hand goes right back to Ben’s leg, another little grounding touch (because he can’t reach his head this time) as he tells Ben they need to talk. And if there was any doubt about Phil’s words earlier about living in the Vic, Callum seems to confirm he did mean the two of them, as he starts to express his aversion to the idea of them living above the Vic (no doubt because it would be with Phil, permanently). He speaks as though he and Ben are going to be on the same wavelength, as I’m sure he doesn’t think Ben wants to live with Phil in the Vic either. Before he can finish though, Ben interrupts and tells him to leave it. Obviously he’s not well, but it also shows again how willing Ben is to just go along with whatever ideas Phil has; the power he has over him. Remember how he got Ben to do what he wanted at Christmas when Ben tried to stop him? Threatened to go back on the bottle. And he did it last summer as well when trying to get Ben to confess to lying about Keanu. So really, Phil can get Ben to do whatever he wants; and he knows that. There’s also the stubbornness that I mentioned earlier as well I imagine, of needing the warehouse job to have been for something, considering that he’s lying to Callum and hiding his further hearing loss. Just like when breaking up with Callum and getting rid of Keanu had to have been worth it. Because if it’s for nothing, then it makes him even worse of a person than he already feels he is.
Obviously Callum doesn’t know about the job and how important Phil getting the Vic is, but he knows just how much Ben seeks out his dad’s approval, so he drops the subject for now, especially seeing that Ben’s ill as well. Ben sarcastically thanks him for saying he looks awful, but Callum ignores it and tells him he should go back to bed. When Ben catches Callum’s words he jokes again about not being quite up to it; and Callum knows he’s trying to deflect which is why he keeps at it, and points out that he has to rest, or there’ll be no operation, because he has to get better before they’ll reschedule it. Ben knows he’s right, so he doesn’t argue.
Callum goes to leave at that point, reminding Ben to take the meds and lets him know that they will talk about ‘this’ – meaning the whole thing with the Vic. Ben watches him leave and then his head drops back down to the sofa – it’s all getting a bit much for him now, with feeling unwell on top of the worries about his hearing, knowing he’s not being honest with Callum, wanting to keep his dad happy, those feelings he has of being a burden and not good enough for anyone.
He gets to his feet, coughing as he goes, and staggers to the chair, holding onto it for dear life as Jay comes in – I’m assuming he saw Callum on the way out so Callum didn’t lock the door. He and Ben weren’t on the best of terms last time we saw them interact, but now Jay’s looking for help with Billy’s birthday present (good thing he’s asking Ben this time, as last time he had to get Billy a present he got him a football shirt with the wrong team on it, lol.) I guess they must have had an offscreen truce. But when Jay sees Ben, he notices he looks rough, and on cue, Ben drops like a stone, and Jay runs to him, shouting his name, but in vain obviously.

Next time we see them, Ben’s awake again, sitting at the table trying to make out what Jay’s saying as he makes his way over with a glass of water and grumbling about Ben not going to see a doctor about his flu when he told him to. Ben shouts at him, demanding he looks at him in an unexpected outburst. He clarifies that Jay has to look at him when he’s talking, and it comes out as a plea, one that’s painful to make but he’s got no choice; it’s forced out of him and he hates it.
Jay doesn’t say anything, but walks around the table to hand him the glass of water and then stands in front of him, Ben avoiding his eye at first but then having to look up at him. Jay’s got Ben sussed and guesses that his outburst isn’t anything to do with the flu, and asks him how much he can hear. Last time he asked Ben that was back when Callum was kidnapped, and Ben told him ‘bits’. But now Ben doesn’t even have the underwater noises to help him out, and he just stares at Jay in desperation until Jay repeats himself slower and clearer. Ben looks away again, as if hesitating; he doesn’t want to admit it out loud but he has to. So he tells Jay the truth: he can’t hear a thing.
Jay sighs, knowing that Ben’s been keeping it quiet, and crouches down so he’s closer to Ben, I’m assuming in an attempt to make it easier for Ben to understand him and not have to crane his neck to look at him. He holds onto Ben’s knee to steady himself and I’d say also in reassurance, and it’s a really sweet image. He asks Ben what Callum’s said about it; at first just assuming that Callum knows. Ben doesn’t respond, and whether that’s because he didn’t catch it, or did but doesn’t want to respond – it occurs to Jay that maybe he hasn’t told Callum, and Ben confirms it when he goes into defensive mode and insists that Jay can’t tell him either – he’s really adamant about it, and even a little panicky.
It makes me think that that’s the root of the reason Ben lied to Callum about the job; not just for the job itself, but because he knows Callum would put two and two together and realise that it was the reason he further damaged his hearing. Jay’s not really one for asking questions anyway, but Ben’s managed to tell him about the hearing loss without having to admit to the job. But I don’t think Ben would have gotten away with telling Callum about the job without Callum realising that it’s connected with his bleeding ear. As we’ve said before; Ben is really scared that his relationship with Callum is held by a thread, because he feels he’s weakened it due to becoming a burden of a boyfriend. He thinks of himself as less now, and can’t help feeling that it’s what Callum thinks as well. He might have even convinced himself that Callum doesn’t want him involved in any dodgy stuff because he doesn’t want to have to become any more of a carer to Ben. It’s nothing that Callum has done; but Ben’s waiting for the other shoe to drop and doesn’t want to make it happen any faster.
Jay interrupts him in the middle of his warning and demands that they go to the hospital; no room for arguments. He walks out of frame, leaving Ben sitting with his water, looking sad and scared.

A little bit later, we’ve got Callum coming into the Vic, greeting Mick at the bar. Mick’s been speaking to Sharon to ask her to help change Linda’s mind about selling to Phil, as she’s refusing to, even if it means losing their deposit on a flat.
Callum picks up on the fact that Mick’s not too happy, and when Mick mentions having to leave out flyers for Ian on top of everything else (is that the truth though? Ian’s words as he left just before Callum arrived were ‘you won’t regret this’ – do you think that’s the moment he offered to buy the Vic?), Callum comments on the fact that it won’t be his problem any more, since they’re leaving.
Callum asks for an orange juice (not like him, is it? He’s always nursing a beer in that place!) and comments to Mick about how he was meant to be spending the day with Ben but things got messed up. He puts it down to the conversation he tried to have with Ben about moving into the Vic with Phil, which was a little bit jarring if I’m honest; I thought it was just because Ben wasn’t well. But maybe he’d planned to stay with him until Ben shut down that conversation, and Callum figured he should leave it until later while Ben rested? And perhaps he went back to the flat and saw he wasn’t there, and took it to mean he was avoiding the talk?
Anyway, Mick empathises, knowing that when Phil Mitchell wants something, he gets it. Callum knows what he means (everyone knows, don’t they?) and mentions that he heard Phil was in earlier shouting his mouth off (which he’d heard from Phil himself, and I love that he’d been told Linda was having a go and took it to mean that Phil was doing the instigating.) Callum expresses his approval at Linda giving as good as she got. You can just tell already that Callum knows how much Phil gets away with and doesn’t like it, and any pushbacks impress him. He’s done it himself a fair few times.
Mick tells Callum that he doesn’t know why it matters who they sell to, and here’s where Callum swoops in and changes the course of the story; he tells Mick that Phil just gets his own way because no one goes against him, and he’s seen that the most with Ben – he knows that it’s fear, and Mick confirms it. Callum goes on to say that it would be nice if Phil didn’t just click his fingers and got what he wanted for a change. This is without him even knowing about Ben being roped into Phil’s job; but he’s seen the lack of resistance from Ben about moving into the Vic, knows about Phil’s orders to kill Keanu, knows that Phil was wanting to pay money to get Ben’s op done sooner, knows about the drama last year about Ben getting cut off from his dad. So he knows about everyone’s inability to say no to him and just wants a bit of pushback for a change. And it gives Mick food for thought.

Back at the flat, Ben holds another pharmacy bag and complains that it’s not much to show for five hours at the hospital. That is a long time, and Jay’s so good to be there with Ben the entire time. He’s even made him a cup of tea. He sits next to Ben and points out the positives: he’s now got his meds for the pain (guessing Callum’s meds weren’t the correct ones after all), his burst eardrum will get better and that he can still have the operation. So it’s confirmed that Ben’s further hearing loss is only temporary, but he could have found that out sooner had he not taken himself to hospital in the first place. He says this all clearly, so Ben can hear him, and Ben knows what he’s doing and tells him so, looking away; he doesn’t like people making allowances for him. Jay responds that he should have told Ben about it sooner, because they’re brothers (and he signs ‘brothers’ as well – cute!) and that there are no secrets between them, that he trusts him more than anyone, even Lola. He’s laying the guilt on thick for Ben, because obviously there is a secret he hasn’t told him, and it involves Lola. You can see the conflict on Ben’s face, but he responds to Jay’s thumbs up with one of his own.
It’s very reminiscent of Callum’s line to Ben last week, about the fact they don’t lie to each other. But of course Ben did exactly that. There’s a whole web of secrets between that little group now – Ben hiding the job from all of them, hiding the burst eardrum from Callum, Jay now hiding it from Callum as well; both Ben and Callum hiding Lola’s secret from Jay (and each other as they don’t know the other one knows), Lola hiding her secret from Jay. It’s a new kind of tension, and I think when everything comes out it will be interesting to see what the change in dynamic is; who sides with who, who gets angry at who, is anyone forced out, that sort of thing.
At the news that his burst eardrum is temporary, Ben probably feels even less inclined to let Callum know; and when Callum arrives back, he rushes to hide his new meds under the cushion next to him.
Callum wonders where Ben’s been all day, and Jay answers for him, mentioning Billy’s birthday present. Callum’s not bothered, and walks over to sit next to Ben, once again reaching out to touch the back of his head as he does – and Ben can’t help but smile at that. Callum suggests a takeaway for the three of them, hand still on Ben, and that’s where we leave them – with Ben’s conflicted little face.

The episode couldn’t have ended on a more apt note – the contract for the Vic was signed, but not by Phil. Turns out Sharon (and Ian) have managed to swoop in and get the Vic, and that’s the duff duff. So instead of trying to persuade Linda to sell to Phil, Mick managed to sell to Sharon instead. It had a very ‘series finale’ vibe to it, and a definite end of an era, with the Carters having been behind the bar for almost seven years now. Mick might have been scared to deny Phil the sale of the Vic, but look at our Callum giving him the courage to turn him down! Brilliant.

EastEnders resumes production at the end of the month, and with that we might end up getting some behind the scenes pictures and updates from set.

We got something pretty exciting this week though – a preview of the Max and Tony episode of Secrets From The Square, airing on Monday 13th July! Considering it’s going to be half an hour long, the minute and a half we got a sneak peek of is only a tiny portion of it! (I put it on YouTube with subtitles here if needed.)

It’s strange to think we won’t see any new Ballum until at least September – it’s going to be a long summer! But I’m sure I’ll be back on the blog with some random essays, as well as some guest entries. Stay well!